François Essertel, Market Head of Europe International at HSBC / Credit: Bertrand Desprez. |
François Essertel, Market Head of Europe International at HSBC / Credit: Bertrand Desprez.
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Francois Essertel, Head of Private Banking in France at HSBC, has just been appointed at the same time as Market Head of Europe International for Private Banking. The opportunity to discuss with him his new missions and his convictions in the wealth management market.
Have you just been appointed Market Head of Europe International for HSBC Private Banking? What are your goals with this new position?
François Essertel: I maintain my current responsibilities as responsible for private banking in France and I extend my coverage to sales teams in Continental Europe. It is a broader role in terms of customer coverage which also includes all the coordination with other business lines and the strengthening for our customers of the International “connectivity”, that is to say our ability to support them all over the world, but also to offer them multiple investment opportunities linked to our unique positioning, particularly in Asia.
The Continental Europe market represents a team of 80 private bankers and a significant amount of assets under management. Our ambition is to develop a much stronger continental European private bank where our presence in corporate activities is significant and with potential. This development makes sense since, among our clients, 6 out of 10 are entrepreneurs or business leaders.
What project for France?
F. E. : For France, we are continuing to develop our activity with clients from 5 million euros in assets with us. Our model is that of a pure private bank within a large international group, with the capacity to support projects corporate.
Few players in France combine both a strong presence in the corporate market and a significant strike force in private banking, which offers a solid balance sheet, a very international value proposition with direct access to Asia, an advisory service. sophisticated with tailor-made proposals.
What effects has the crisis had on the business model of companies?
F. E. : We are in a period of transformation of industries and this is creating new opportunities in certain sectors. The fact that the rates are negative, facilitates and encourages the transformation of industries towards new models.
We stay positive on l’equity because this transformation cycle is not over and there is a strong interest from multiple investors (private equity / family offices / large corporates) to seek yield and value creation, selectively, on sectors with potential.
Strengthening the customer experience, transforming companies towards more than RSE, the “green transition”, the combination of a digital and physical offer, the internationalization of companies, particularly towards Asia, are all levers used by investors to select companies and industries.
Doesn’t the strategy of low interest rates and swelling of the debt risk reiterating the 2008 crisis?
F. E. : In the developed countries there was a collective feeling that it was necessary to deal with this crisis in this way. And fortunately, because we have avoided an economic disaster and above all protected companies, know-how and jobs in companies that deserved it, which will allow us to start again much faster, without a breakdown crisis.
At the level of individuals, the savings rate is very high and they will start to consume again and thus to create wealth. The fundamentals of large corporates are preserved and the redeployment of their capital is already very visible.
Does the search for meaning seem more marked among your clients since the crisis?
F. E. : Absolutely, and it’s quite varied. There is a desire among our clients to understand how their money is invested. It is also a cross-generational trend. We’re assisting a major transformation of society as the Covid has greatly accelerated.
Beyond an offer that is developing in different forms (specialized funds, dedicated ESG mandates, green bonds, etc.), it is also becoming important to develop our reports in order to be able to show how our investment choices correspond to the criteria. ESG, with more detail on the contribution of the various factors to performance, to the impact of their portfolio and explanations of the filters that are applied.
Is a particular effort being made more on financial education in ESG matters?
F. E. : Absolutely, and even internally because we also have to train our teams. For this, we have more than a hundred ESG ambassadors within the HSBC private banking community. These are employees who have been trained in our internal academy. They serve as references within our teams and with our clients.
HSBC separates from its French retail bank
On Friday, June 18, 2021, the British bank HSBC announced the plan to sell its retail banking activities in France, losing 1.9 billion euros in the process. The buyer is the competing bank My Money Group, managed by the American fund Cerberus.
What strategy do you want to capitalize on to differentiate yourself from other banks?
F. E. : To be a pure private bank within a large international group and widely established in Continental Europe and France, this is already differentiating.
There is also the fact that the Asian market is part of our DNA. In view of the changing economic cycles and growth rates in Asia, we believe that asset allocations to private clients may further strengthen in this region.
For example, we have launched a new product for clients who want private equity in Asia, and we can also more broadly provide liquidity through refinancing on major credit lines. private equity. Our financing offer for our private clients is particularly wide and we aim to support them in their main real estate, financial and corporate transactions.
We have developed large Advisory teams for advice on themes and on all asset classes, with the desire to offer tailor-made, sophisticated and international products. The teams work in concert with our credit teams, and make it possible to complete an extended and personalized management offer under mandate (with specificities in Asia, l’ESG, and alternative investments).
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